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Court upholds murder conviction in Santa attack

ATLANTA (AP) — The Georgia Supreme Court has upheld a murder conviction and life prison sentence for a man accused of fatally attacking a woman while he was dressed as Santa Claus.

Court documents show Elkin Clarke, then 49-years-old, was dressed Santa and was selling candy with a 74-year-old woman when he hit her in the head with a 2-by-4 board in downtown Atlanta in December 2004. One witness told police Clarke hit the woman twice more as she lay motionless on the ground.

The woman died a little more than a month after the attack.

A Fulton County jury in February 2008 convicted Clarke of malice murder. He was also convicted of simple assault of a Georgia State University student who tried helping the woman.